Faster

Aug. 8 (UPI) — The Defense Department is pressuring U.S. military contractors to produce weapons and munitions “significantly faster” as the country’s stockpile dwindles due to the Iran war, it was reported Saturday.

In a memo obtained by The Washington Post, the Pentagon told industry leaders to “drive significantly faster, more aggressive delivery schedules and/or increased production for critical capabilities.”

Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg said contractors have 21 days to submit plans on how they plan to achieve that.

“Years-long development cycles are not acceptable,” Feinberg wrote in the Wednesday memo obtained by The Post. “We must dramatically accelerate our program schedules and expand our production capacity now.”

Multiple news outlets reported this week that the United States had depleted much of its stockpile of long-range precision missiles in Iran.

In just the first month of the conflict, the military launched more than 850 Tomahawk cruise missiles, alarming some Pentagon officials, The Post reported.

Officials have said the U.S. military has been launching the missiles faster than manufacturers can replace them.

President Donald Trump on Thursday dismissed the reports, saying the United States has “massive amounts” of munitions.

“Additionally, large amounts are being manufactured and shipped to the U.S. as needed,” he wrote on Truth Social. Defense companies are building the largest number of plants and factories in our country’s history.”

“The ‘leakers’ of these treasonous statements are being hunted down,” Trump added. “Long-term jail sentences will be sought!”

Pentagon spokesman Sean Parnell said the military “has everything it needs to execute at the time and place of the president’s choosing.”

“We have executed multiple successful operations across combatant commands while ensuring the U.S. military possesses a deep arsenal of capabilities to protect our people and our interests,” he added in a statement to CBS News.

The achievement is breathtaking. Recognition is growing. The fastest known time is hers.

Ultrarunner Sophie Woods will have more to say after a few well-deserved full night’s sleep. For now, consider her unvarnished secret to traversing a mountainous 1,242-mile trail network through Italy, Slovenia, Austria, Germany, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, France and Monaco in 28 days, 17 hours and 59 minutes — nearly a week faster than anyone else has been known to do so.

“Just one step. That’s all you have to do. Just one step forward,” Woods said on Instagram.

Woods earlier reported the record time as 29 days, but corrected it in an email to The Times on Monday, saying she and her husband George “were all so exhausted they hadn’t calculated correctly.”

The Via Alpina course follows the length of the Alps with elevation equivalent to climbing Mount Everest a dozen times. The length is a nice round number in kilometers — 2,000. The total elevation climbed was roughly 110,000 meters, an average of 12,000 feet of daily vertical ascent per day.

Yet another number is equally impressive: Woods is 42 years old.

Woods, who competes using her maiden name Sophie Amy Grant, set off on July 4 in Trieste, Italy, and finished on the Mediterranean coast of Monaco. She endured heatwaves, storms, wildfires and a swarm of horseflies. She ran, climbed and hiked 14 to 18 hours a day, covering 40 to 50 miles before getting a few hours of sleep in a van, tent or occasionally a hotel room.

“I am ecstatic but knackered,” she told BBC Sport. “I’m really tired.”

She ate and drank what would be expected of someone exerting herself to the nth degree. Energy gels containing carbs, electrolytes and amino acids along with a sprinkle of caffeine were essential, but Woods also splurged on McDonalds and mounds of pasta when she met up with her husband, photographer Zoe Salt and dog Nila at day’s end. She estimated that she consumed close to 7,000 calories a day.

The first week was the toughest, with Woods describing her feeling “a thousand pulled muscles,” but by halfway through the journey she told Her Sports that “things still ache now, and by the end of the day my feet are definitely ready for a rest, but I currently only have one small blister on my heel, which I’m calling a huge win. All things considered, I’m feeling really good.”

Sophie Woods runs a route on Via Alpina at Klausenpass by Hotel Meiringen on July 20.

(Zoe Salt)

The previous fastest known time in the Via Alpina was 35 days, 21 hours by British runner Jake Catterall, 34, in 2024. Tessa Caspers, 33, set the fastest women’s time for the route at 38 days, 2 hours last year.

Catterall might need to update his website, which claims not only the Via Alpina record but others including an arduous mountain trek in North Africa and a 3,500-mile mad dash across the entire length of Europe, from Norway to Andalusia, Spain.

He knew all about Woods’ effort, however. On day 20 of her journey, Catterall met her in Switzerland after she had traversed “a particularly spicy descent on a sketchy section of via ferrata,” according to Woods’ Instagram.

“Safely back at base camp, she was met by a brilliant surprise,” the post read. “Waiting to cheer her on was @jakecatterall — the current Via Alpina FKT holder — who had gone out of his way on the journey to his own adventure just to support Sophie. It was such a thoughtful gesture, and one that gave everyone a real lift.”

FKT is short for the “fastest known time” that a person or small group achieves on a particular course, usually somewhere it would be difficult or impossible to host an actual race.

To submit an FKT, the route must be at least five miles long or have at least 500 feet of climbing. Some are very short — the Manitou Incline in Colorado is less than one mile long but climbs 1,900 feet and begins at 7,000 feet of elevation. Others such as the Via Alpina and the Appalachian Trail are thousands of miles long.

For verification, GPS information must be submitted to the FKT website. The route can be linked by uploading it to Strava, Garmin Connect or another online training platform. FKT has not verified Woods’ record yet.

Woods’ mark likely will be tested by another runner, although someone else her age and gender completing the Via Alpina in fewer than 29 days would be a challenging feat.

Woods is from New Zealand and she and her husband spent a decade in London before living in their camper van for years while traveling throughout Europe, finally settling in Andorra, a tiny principality situated in the Pyrenees mountains between France and Spain.

And it is there Woods will rest for a spell.

“I’m absolutely ecstatic,” she said on Instagram a day after she completed Via Alpina. “I still can’t believe that we did it.”

An airport has revealed an easy trick for a shorter wait at airport security

Holidaymakers can cut down the time they spend waiting at airport security using a little-known trick. The travel hack was shared by Manchester Airport, and it could be perfect for families ahead of the busy summer holidays.

According to Manchester Airport, there’s an easy way to reduce your queue time if you’re allowed to choose which lane to wait in. Posting tips for passengers online, the travel hub shared an ‘Ultimate Airport Guide’ on its website. There are various tips, covering everything from the best shoes to wear and how to decorate suitcases for maximum visibility.

In the ‘at the airport’ section of the guide, there’s a hack that could help passengers fly through security using ‘reverse psychology.’ Manchester Airport said: “If given the choice of security lanes, pick the left. Most passengers are right handed and will subconsciously prefer the right, making the left a little quieter.”

The airport added that customers can also pay to upgrade to FastTrack for a faster experience. “For just a few pounds, you can purchase FastTrack tickets to use the priority lane and avoid the queues before Security on your way out and Passport Control on your way in.” Many airports offer a similar experience, allowing passengers to pay to use FastTrack.

Elsewhere, London Stansted Airport offers the same security advice for passengers. The airport retierates: “If given the choice of security lanes, pick the left.”

The tip could be especially helpful when many passengers are travelling at the same time, such as during the school summer holidays. However, it’s worth noting that passengers don’t always get to choose their lane.

Nonetheless, they can help speed up the process by avoiding accessories that are difficult to remove. This makes the process faster for everyone.

Offering advice online, London Stansted Airport said: “To prepare your outfit for security, wear shoes that you can take off and put on easily. Avoid fiddley belts or fastenings in your clothes and excess jewellery. Try and keep your pockets empty of non-essentials.”

Despite this, passengers might still want to pack a few layers for later in their journey. The airport recommends packing items such as jumpers, which are easy to take on and off when the temperature changes.

The travel advice said: “Temperatures aboard flights can vary so wearing a few removable layers is advised. An extra jumper can always be used as a pillow if nothing else.”